Tarot Cards Are they the same

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 24 Apr 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

nightprincezz	24 Apr 2002
I was wondering i am just getting started in this and i was wondering what deck would be the best and do they all contain the same cards ? I know it is kinda stupid to ask this question but any help will be welcomed thank you

Rhiannon	24 Apr 2002
No questions are stupid. Well, most questions aren't stupid anyway. ;) Not all decks are created equal. A tarot deck contains 78 cards. The basic suits (Minor Arcana) are Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles. Sometimes an author/creator will rename a suit, i.e; Pentacles to Coins or Wands to Staves or Spears. There are 14 cards per suit (10 plus 4 Court Cards). And 22 Major Arcana. One of the things most of us will recommend to a beginner is to get a deck based on the Rider Waite Smith deck. You can get that deck itself, or if the pictures don't appeal to you, some excellent alternatives are: Universal Waite, Robin Wood, Morgan Greer and Hanson Roberts. I'm sure others have some recommendations as well. Poke around and see which ones you like. Rhiannon :)

truthsayer	24 Apr 2002
it's not a stupid question at all! never be afraid of asking a question here. we want to help beginners. off the top of my head, it's best deck to start with a rider-waite-smith style deck like the regular rws or the universal rws. there are literally hundreds of different style of tarot decks but start w/ rws. once you get into it then you can invest into different decks. tarot decks have 78 cards. they are broken into 5 divisions. the major arcana or what you might consider more spiritual cards or karmic cards=0-21. they start w/ zero the fool and end w/ 21 the universe. the minor arcana break down into 4 suits: cups, swords, pentacles, and wands. each suit goes 1-10 then generally page, knight, queen, and king. some decks may deviate slightly to princesses and princes for the pages and knights or something like that. the cards are interpreted by the symbols we learn to read from the images. maybe it's just a facial expression or body posture or a certain flower or color. you learn by practicing readings probably w/ a book if you want or wing it by just saying what you see in the card. as you learn reading, the cards will become more like telling a meaningful story by putting the pieces together. it's easiest to catch on to reading tarot by choosing one card a day to examine and journal about what you see in that card. afterwards check against the book to see how your answer compares to the book. but don't get hung up on having the same answers as the book. in tarot, there are no wrong answers. we all see different things in the same spread depending on our perspective. just have fun! tarot is a life long journey. it's not a goal or a destination. you'll never reach a point when you'll say there's nothing left to learn about tarot. i've been doing tarot 27 years and i'm still amazed about how i keep learning new things about this wonderful art!!

jmd	25 Apr 2002
Just to be different to the above two recommendations, let me suggest that you first go for whichever deck draws you, or appeals to you. You will probably find that in no time, you'll end up owning a number of decks. Having said the above, I personally would not recommend the Rider-Waite/Smith as a 'beginner' deck. I would initially recommend a deck which has its pips non-illustrated, and that uses the earlier numbering for Justice (8) and Strength (11). Such decks include the Marseilles, 1jj, Schaffhouse (also called Classic), and numerous others. The Waite deck can always be obtained afterwards. Part of the argument for obtaining a Waite is that most books (written in English) principally use this deck for illustrative purposes... that, in my mind, is not sufficient grounds for getting it... Go with your own feelings... choose whichever deck you feel drawn to!

Kiama	25 Apr 2002
I think I will disagree slightly with JMD... Whilst I think that going with deck you feel drawn to is a good idea, I don't think that buying a deck with non-illustrated Minor Arcana is the best way to start out. I, and many others, have found it easier to read the Minor Arcana cards by looking at the scenes going on within that card, exactly like the Majors... This still leaves room for you to learn some of the meanings from the book, but doesn't mean you have to learn all of them, which having non-illustrated cards would. Although there is nothing wrong with studying and memorising, I find that you end up restricting the meanings you give to the cards. Its also the quickest way to put yourself off Tarot! The number of times I've heard people say to me: "Its just so much to remember!" is unbelievable! Otherwise, I agree with what JMD said... The RWS is a good one to have to compare other decks to, but its not the most stunning deck around! Kiama

Jenny-Li	25 Apr 2002
Someone once told me that the only stupid questions are the ones never asked - because they are the only ones we don't learn anything from. So don't be hard on yourself for asking questions! I would like to agree with jmd in that you should get a deck that appeals to YOU first of all. However - I don't agree with jmd in that you should get one with pips - if you do you'll have to go pretty deep into numerology studies before you can penetrate the symbology and meanings of the pips. I think that with a deck that has illustrated pips you get the numerology part kind of "for free" as you learn more and more about the cards. At least that's the way it has worked for me! But, the main thing is you shouldn't listen to either one of us when it comes to picking your deck - you should listen to yourself! And one thing I would recommend you to do is to go to the Tarot Basics section of this forum - there you'll find TONS of information on how to interpret and work with the cards. (Those pages are based on the Rider-Waite-deck, but I think it would be very useful even if you choose an other deck!) And good luck with everything, I hope you'll have as exciting a journey as I am! (And don't be afraid to ask a lot of questions!) Love and light! Jenny:)

Aerin	25 Apr 2002
I would also ask yourself, what is an example (are examples) of something which you learnt really easily and effortlessly and enjoyed the learning of? What is the way you feel most comfortable learning and get the best results from? When have you been motivated to learn? What tends to block you? And then apply this to the way you learn the tarot. For example, I know that I learn best when I use a mixture of reading theory and playing and doing, plus I like having access to a lot of resources and ideas all at once not just one source. Whatever I am learning I like to mix intuitive and analytic approaches, and I learn best when having fun. Aesthetic appeal is also important e.g. if I hate the way a book is put together, if it written badly, or there are a lack of pictures, or a hint of drudgery then I tend to give up on something. Finally, I like to learn by myself first and then share with people once I have my own ideas. So applying this to Tarot, I bought both a Rider Waite deck and a couple of very pretty decks I loved, plus a variety of books. I started interpreting spreads straight away, using a mixture of what I thought from the pictures and also looking up card meanings in different places. As I got familiar with the cards, I tested myself with the book meanings and found that there were only a few I didn't know so I learnt those. Just recently I have joined this forum, and am starting to read other's contributions and starting to share my own ideas. This approach is right for me. It wouldn't be right for everyone. So approach it in whatever way suits your own learning style. And experiment: if something isn't working for you then do something else. Anything else. Have fun whatever you decide on Aerin

Kellinator	26 Apr 2002
I agree with Kiama and Jenny-Li. Getting a deck with illustrated pips makes the cards much easier to learn, plus is more fun. And I personally believe tarot should be fun :) I would say go with a deck that appeals to you, but look at all the cards first (many stores have sample decks) and make sure you like them all. And by all means, avoid decks with extra cards or radically changed meanings your first time out! My first deck was the Faery Wicca, and when I started learning more about tarot and realized that "The Hangman" was NOT the same thing as "The Hanged Man," I had to get rid of it. I personally think something close to the RWS would be a good shot. Have a look at the decks section of Aeclectic. While it isn't reviewed here, the Diamond Tarot combines Rider-Waite pictures with very attractive borders. It might be a good, and aesthetically pleasing, choice. Good luck, and let us know what you choose! Kelly

wigwag	26 Apr 2002
As a relative newie still to the tarot. I have something to add. I have read ordinary playing cards since childhood and still sometimes had to refer to a book. I spent hours memorising the meanings for the pips. Therefore, I am sorry jmd but I don't agree with starting with a pack with non pictorial minor cards. I learnt the tarot basics in a week and can read them easily without a book. (although I do read tarot books to refresh my knowledge). I do agree that a reader should pick a pack that "speaks" but as so many starter books concentrate on a rider waite type pack, then I would go for something based on this pack first. I had a rider waite pack that I didn't like but I love the Universal Waite which is the same but much more colourful. Good luck, whichever pack you choose, also you don't have to beleive the books. You can interpret the card as you see it as well, in which case go for the one you feel you can understand the best.

The Tarot Cards Are they the same thread was originally posted on 24 Apr 2002 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.